Here is an issue upon which all of us, except the water company, can agree:
Dear Neighbor,
City Council Meeting, Tuesday Evening Nov. 14 at City Hall at 6 pm. The Agenda, includes the water tank issue item #4 with 45 minutes of discussion allotted to it. Please make an effort to attend and speak. The City Council members are our representatives.
What is the Issue?
Sedona is dependent upon private water companies to provide our water needs. In 2002, Arizona Water Company was quoted in the Sedona Community Plan that at Sedona's build out, they projected that another 1,000,000 gallon water tank would be needed to service the east side of Sedona. (You might want to familiarize yourself with the Water Resource Element of the Sedona Community Plan. Visit www.Sedona.gov/documents/view.aspx?PK=60 and read it online.)
There is no question that this is true. But where shall the tank be placed? At what cost to the community? And why two tanks?
Good questions. As you probably are aware, the Arizona Water Company (AWC) has applied for a permit with the Forest Service to place two water tanks in the Broken Arrow area near the jeep trail above the Devil's Dining Room in the National Forest. And the City Council is meeting tomorrow night, Tuesday, to discuss it.
If the permit is granted, there will be an enormous destruction of virgin pinion forest lands, native wildflowers, wildlife watering holes, and other natural resources. I wish that I could send you a picture of the pristine area in which they want to put a huge, football field sized concrete pad, fencing, two huge water tanks and a 4500 foot water line through the forest to the end of Morgan Road, not to mention the roads they need to build around the tanks for building them and servicing them in the future - all will surely irreparably damage that forest area.
Have you ever walked up the Broken Arrow trail, and climbed onto the smooth red rocks and walked into the Arizona cypress and Pinion forest? Those rocks will be chiseled through 6' or more to make room for the water pipe, and the trees will be cut down, and the path that the Sierra Club built along side the jeep trail for hikers and horseback riders will be completely dug up, and the jeep trail will be dug up too, to make room for the 6' deep 12" pipe to carry the water to 179.
Oh, and when I asked representatives why two tanks instead of the one they had originally planned, they said while they were building one, it would be cost effective to build two.
Why Destroy the National Forest?
See, private land in Sedona is not free. But the land in the forest, in some people's opinion, is. And the neighboring wildlife and vegetation is silent about this. I, as you know, am not. And I hope you won't be. When the land and the vegetation is destroyed in the Broken Arrow area to make room for the tanks and to haul in the equipment to build them, there will be a huge cost, but it won't be monetary, and the Arizona Water Company, a private company, won't have to bear it. We all will.
What are the Alternatives?
The water company needs to find a more suitable site - and there must be one. It needs to be around 4500 feet in elevation. I have heard the airport mesa is available, I have heard there is already another tower up there and that the manager is not opposed to more. The land is open and available But Arizona Water Company doesn't want to construct a pipe down the mesa and bring it over the bridge by Tlaquepaque, stating that it will be too expensive. But the destruction of the forest land isn't?
What is the Real Issue?
Of course, the bottom line here is cost. AWC has looked at other locations in the national forest, one by the cemetery, one by the Chapel, one by the forest by Courthouse Butte, and they thought about the airport, and in every case, and they have decided, based on linear feet, that the cost of the water line from the tank to the water line on 179 is way too expensive, period. But is it?
Arizona Water Company has been eyeing the Broken Arrow Trail site for years - engineering studies and all. When asked, representatives from the AWC said there was no other land available for the tanks. They meant vacant land. Why doesn't AWC purchase private property then redevelop/rezone it for water tank usage? This would certainly be a lot cheaper than the cost of putting in a line in the other areas which they've deemed too expensive.
Just because Broken Arrow and Morgan Road is the cheapest way to get a pipe to 179, doesn't mean it's the best way. And the city council and the citizens it represents should take some responsibility, along with AWC, to find a location that doesn't impact the environment and our community in such a destructive way.
What Can You Do?
I urge you to attend tomorrow night to let the City Council know we understand the need for a water tank but don't want to destroy one of the most beautiful places in Sedona just because the land is "cheap."
Also, if you haven't already done so, please send comments to the Forest Service asking them to reject the permit request in favor of a better location - jadams05@fs.fed.us (Judy Adams).
And if you would like to be part of a team of reasonable people who support the water company and will help them find a better location - so they don't have to start the process all over again - and face public opposition from a different group of citizens, then please let me know.
Please forward this email to anyone who wants to protect our environment. It's an opportunity to be heard and take a positive role in community enhancements.
Sincerely,
Sarah McLean
Balance in the Forest Citizen Action Committee
PO Box 1178
Sedona, AZ 86339
(928) 204-0067 home office
(928) 254-0064 cell
(866) 654-1705 fax
balance@esedona.net <mailto:balance@esedona.net>
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Originally Posted by FrenchChili
Re: Broken Arrow Trail to be Closed...
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